Blue Butterfly Flooring

Prints now for sale on Fine Art America!

2012-02-05T01:14:00.000-08:00

I have now uploaded lots of images onto Fine Art America this means you can now order prints cards etc on line! http://emily-campbell.artistwebsites.com/

<a href="http://fineartamerica.com/art/all/surrealism/all" style="font: 10pt arial; text-decoration: underline;">surrealism art</a>

<a href="http://fineartamerica.com/art/all/contemporary/prints" style="font: 10pt arial; text-decoration:

underline;">contemporary prints</a>

<a href="http://fineartamerica.com/art/digital+art/floral/all" style="font: 10pt arial; text-decoration: underline;">floral digital art</a>

<a href="http://fineartamerica.com/art/digital+art/fantasy/all" style="font: 10pt arial; text-decoration: underline;">fantasy digital art</a>

<a href="http://fineartamerica.com/art/all/animals/all" style="font: 10pt arial; text-decoration: underline;">animals art</a>

<a href="http://fineartamerica.com/art/all/fantasy/all" style="font: 10pt arial; text-decoration: underline;">fantasy art</a>

<a href="http://fineartamerica.com/art/all/floral/all" style="font: 10pt arial; text-decoration: underline;">floral art</a>

The making of Love Ties, Hanley Park Stoke on Trent

2011-09-05T07:03:00.000-07:00

Interview with Victoria Redshaw and Emily Campbell

2011-07-11T23:49:00.000-07:00

The Magical World of Emily Campbell

Posted on July 11th, 2011 Victoria No comments

As a Trend Forecaster for the Interiors industry I’m privileged to review the work of International Creatives from diverse disciplines. I’m often excited, intrigued and delighted by their work but I don’t remember ever feeling Uplifted … until recently when I discovered the work of Emily Campbell. Let me show you what I mean:

These lighboxes installed in West Heath Primary Care Centre in Birmingham depict magical vistas of the local area. They are typical of Emily’s ability to introduce a sense of calm, wellbeing and positivity into buildings which are often places of personal stress.

Stoke-on-Trent based Artist Emily Campbell creates surreal and often juxtaposed scenes depicting rainbow suspended bridges over powder paint blue skies, safari animals, dragon flies, flamingos, rabbits nibbling and seeming so real you want to stroke them…alongside Urbanscapes and scenes of local Communities. It’s a mix that is ultimately poetic, perhaps romanticised, dare I say Spiritual and most definitely beneficial to those who come into the spaces the works reside in. The work communicates “everything is going to be alright”…and I like that! As Shelley often says in her seminars “Our world sometimes seems overwhelmed by ugliness as we are bombarded on a daily basis by negative messages from the Media. During these particularly complex and trying times we seek to surround ourselves with beauty.” Emily’s work allows the ordinary and the difficult to be transformed into the extraordinary and the tranquil. Emily’s pieces are ofcommunities and for communities. It is accessible artwork that creates a sense of escapism and fantasy and, as you’ll see, even encourages people to play.

Today Emily discusses her favourite works with me, explains her creative techniques and the thinking behind her 2009 venture into the world of Flooring via her company Blue Butterfly Flooring.

Lightboxes for West Heath Primary Care Centre

VR: I find your work emotionally uplifting and visually striking. What are your personal aspirations for your works when they are placed particularly in schools and healthcare environments?

EC: Many thanks, those are very nice comments! Coming from a Fine Art background I have always been interested in the way we perceive things, the way we look at things. My work is full of details, which I hope means that every time you look you see something new. Not only this but all the images are actually made from very ordinary photographs of the every day. I like to create a bit of magic in the ordinary and the familiar, in the hope that the viewer can take a sense of the extraordinary back into the real world. For example if you look very closely into the heart of a raindrop and let your imagination flow, what might be hiding? In Healthcare settings this is particularly important, as they are places where most of the time we would rather not be. I hope that the works serve to distract and calm patients, and also allow them to be part of a more magical and uplifting environment.

‘A World of Difference’ – A series of backlit duratans for Harplands Acute Psychiatric Hospital

EC: In Schools I would like to think the pieces develop and compliment children’s inherent imagination. I like to hope that they encourage creativity and conversations and allow children to recognize that the world can be quite an extraordinary place!

‘How Does Your Garden Grow?’ – A bespoke vinyl floor for the entrance of Summerbank Primary School

VR: Can you explain your creative process to our readers please Emily…Do you take all the photographs yourself? Do you start with a hand drawn layout sketch? Is it a very fluid/flexible creative process? What software do you use? What is your involvement with the final manufacturing process…particularly for the flooring?

EC: Ohh the creative process – this is the bit I lovemost about what I do! I always start with the space – a bit like a painter uses a palette of colours to create a painting, my palette is made from the people, place and function of a space. Art can do many things and I think it is fundamental to think about want the Art needs to do, i.e. distract, calm, help with way finding, change the atmosphere etc. Once all these things have been researched I tend to take lots and lots of pictures and Yes I take all the pictures myself (I now have a library of thousands on my computer!) – Then I sit at my computer with some very loud music, sometimes a glass of wine (not really relevant, but for those interested, Kate Bush and a white Rioja) and I completely lose myself. I can sit for hours making the images, totally lost in the world I am creating.

Canvas Design

EC continues: The images are composed using Photoshop, cutting, pasting, cloning etc – nothing very complicated. Once I am happy with the images, they always go back to the client for approval, as at this point it is easy for changes to be made.

I have a variety of different contractors that I work with and have built up good relationships with them over the years, so I know the quality of the final artworks. There will always be some variation in colours when you go to print so I often send a hardcopy for printers to colour match the images. It is always a surprise though to see the final products, it is very different seeing an image on a 23 inch monitor and then seeing the work as a 10m x 10 m floor piece – I can get quite stressed before installation!

VR: You write in your Artists Statement about the importance ofconversations…how do your conversations with the people who will use the spaces your work appears in inform and inspire the final designs you create?

EC: I often work with a fantastic Story Teller, Maria Whatton, she has an amazing ability to facilitate some beautifully creative texts from both adults and children in the community. Maria encourages the use of similes and a very visual language – I then visually interpret the community’s observations to make the work. For example one man talked about seeing huge barrage balloons during the war and described them as being like enormous grey elephants in the sky – this of course I loved. I like the idea of the community’s words creating new histories and stories, the light boxes I make from these become almost like contemporary stained glass windows.

‘Visions of Home’ – Summerfield Primary Care Centre

A massive vinyl banner (seen insitu below), depicting images of the local area, combined with magical elements. Images inspired by conversations with community.

EM continues: For ‘Love Ties’ (pictured below) I worked with members of the community to talk about love, it was actually quite emotional – it is not something people talk about very publicly in our society. Participants then wrote love letters, texts from which were made from brushed and polished stainless steel and wrapped for example around the islands in the boating lake and on the upraises of the steps. It means that the work stems directly from the community that will be living with it.

‘Love Ties’ – A permanent Public Art Installation in Hanley Park, Stoke

VR: Your work is wonderfully magical with a strong dreamscape aesthetic…a mix of reality and fantasy that is beautifully surreal. Who are you inspired by from the creative fields?

Canvas Design

EC: I always find this a hard question as so many things in the world influence me constantly. However, in order to answer your question, although visually nothing like my images, I really enjoy the work of Richard Wilson (pictured left) – his work turns the world as we know it on its head. I remember seeing his oil Piece 20:50 (pictured below) at the Saatchi Gallery years ago and could not believe the sense of vertigo I had when I was immersed in it. An absolutely stunning, but beautifully simple installation – made from something as basic as oil.

20:50 by Richard Wilson – Used sump oil & steel

VR: Your flooring work seems to have a strong impact on people…do you observe that it is the catalyst for ‘play’ and encourages a sense of wonder even in adults?

EC: I certainly hope so – When I started printing the flooring, I had a sample in my living room, my daughter who was five at the time spent hours playing on it, her play was interrupted by an urgent visit to the toilet, when she said to her friend “I just need to leave my world for a minute to go to the loo” This made me smile a lot.

EC continues: I think even when you are 40, it is about the transformation of ones experience of a space, jumping over the waves and spotting the fish is a far more interesting way to get to the library! I think the flooring brings out the child within us all, making spaces more magical places to be.

Detail of flooring

VR: I understand you plan to expand the product range available from Blue Butterfly. What product areas would you like to explore?

EC: Lots! It is one of the issues we have, you can print onto virtually anything these days and although this gives us massive potential for interior design products, it is hard to know what to concentrate on.

One area we are really excited about is cube seating. These would use the designs for the canvas’s, which were actually designed for the cubes. The image would be wrapped around the sides of the cube with a sky image on the top. When the cubes were not being used for seating they can be stacked in the corner and become kind of 3D pictures (This idea from my fantastic new Sales Director, Emma).

We are also thinking about more wall based products, I have just had some images printed onto Perspex for Manchester Children’s Hospital. The Perspex has such a contemporary and sparkly quality which really suits some of my designs. Any other suggestions for applications from any of your readers are more than welcome?

VR: Where can our readers see your work exhibited this year?

EC: We are hoping to be at 100% Design in September, but are always happy to meet people to show our products. It is hard to get a sense of the vibrancy and print quality unless you see them for real.

VR: Finally…what commissions are you currently working on Emily and what other areas of development do you have in the pipeline?

EC: I am currently working on a massive image 16 meters long, for the façade of a new build Health centre in Blackburn ‘Beautiful Blackburn Moments’ – I am quite excited about this because I am using a new process, ceramic print onto glass. This means the image is glazed onto the glass, which makes it permanent and durable. I think though this process has massive applications for interior design, as the artwork can become part of the fabric of the space.

An area we really want to expand on with Blue Butterfly Flooring is bespoke work, I love working with interior designers and combining skills to create truly special places for people. We are currently in discussions with the interior designers for a top London Department Store, so exciting times ahead!

Many, many thanks to Emily for sharing her fantastic work with us today. I have been involved with the flooring industry in several guises since I first founded Scarlet Opus…writing for flooring magazines, presenting trend seminars at flooring exhibitions, acting as a Colour Consultant, as a Design Director and an Ambassador. But in truth it is rare indeed to discover a Designer applying their creativity to this sector and producing something genuinely exciting. Yes we see this in the area of rugs but beyond that product it’s only very occasionally that I’ve seen flooring that has honestly WOWed me. Emily’s flooring makes me go “WOW” and it makes me stretch my wonder muscles. And I’m not alone in this reaction…Interior Designer Stephanie Prior at British department store Heals agrees:

“In terms of design, I think Emily has created a range that is unique and definitely filling in that missing piece in the design/retail industry. Although her designs work amazingly well in healthcare centres, schools etc, I really feel she can offer an amazing and unusual option for residential homes, flats etc. I can definitely see this working in children’s rooms and playrooms, conservatories and even living rooms. I just love the way that no matter what angle you look at it or stand, it feels as though you are within the scene. It really is pure genius!”

I think we’ll end today’s posting on that amazing endorsement!

To see more images of Emily’s work, information on her creative process and contact details for commissions please visit: www.emilycampbell.co.uk

For more information about Blue Butterfly Flooring visit: www.bluebutterflyflooring.com

Or check Emily out on facebook:

http://www.facebook.com/pages/Emily-Campbell-Blue-Butterfly-Flooring/105954092779559

‘Harplands Reflective Space’ – Harplands Hospital Stoke-on-Trent

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Beautiful Blackburn Moments

2011-03-07T00:32:00.000-08:00

The above image has been created for the glass frontage of the new Blackburn Health Centre. Creative writing workshops took place at St Mary’s College where students were encouraged to think about ‘beautiful moments’. Some of the students then came to a follow up workshop having taken photos of Blackburn and created their own digital images. All these images have been incorporated into the final piece. Another consultation took place in Blackburn Library, where members of the public were asked to specify which parts of Blackburn they considered beautiful; these areas have also been used to create the vista.

The piece is based on the community consultation detailed above but also aims to give the sense of time and the shifting light that occurs through out the day (specified in the initial brief). The birds along the top of the image create a sense of transition and movement through the image indicating a period of change and regeneration.

Beautiful Blackburn Moments aims to be an uplifting piece that makes something extraordinary out of the everyday. See more in the gallery of www.bluebutterflyflooring.com

Catch up on Progress of Artworks at Edinburgh Sick Kids A and E Department

2010-11-28T01:07:00.000-08:00

I spent a very productive 2 days on the A and E ward, meeting with many members of staff, patients and their families. All the staff were very friendly and informative and were very interested in the idea of artwork in the new build, but also desperate for something in the existing department. Some of the patients made images with me on the computer, choosing colours, favourite animals and other imagery they enjoyed.

Reponses

My initial response to the Sick Kids A and E is that it has a very ‘family’ atmosphere. All the staff seem to know each other well and it seems do their best to create a warm and friendly environment, this is often what can get lost in the move to a new build. Artworks therefore need to create a familiar and human element to the new build. One member of staff, had photos he had taken of Edinburgh and I pointed out that I could use these in the work, with a text board to credit him. If any other members of staff have photos they have taken it may be possible to incorporate them into the artworks too.

Staff talked about how the kids often really enjoyed favourite cartoon characters, this however is not something that cannot be utilised, (by me anyway!) because of copyright issues. However when staff saw previous work, it was pointed out that many cartoon characters are animals – the penguins of Madagascar, or Dumbo the Elephant and therefore the animal thematic could be discussed with kids in relation to cartoons. Another important point that the Disability Liaison Nurse pointed out was that many autistic kids were actually quite frightened by flat painted, primary colours and that the photographic subtlety would work much better. Having said this, another member of staff pointed out that kids with visual impairment would need bold images – this can also be achieved photographically, by playing with scale and colour contrasts.

Treatment Beds

Several points came out of this stage of the consultation, the first and most strongly felt by staff was that it would be hugely beneficial to have images on the ceiling above the beds. This was to distract children when painful procedures are taking place. It was suggested that the images could incorporate certain puzzles etc so staff could get the children to really concentrate on the images, rather than what was happening. Whilst these images need to distract, they also need to have a calming and soothing feel to them.

Ideas for images:

· Images that contain an animal or ‘thing’ that begins with every letter of the alphabet (for older kids).

· Images that you have to search for things (a bit like Where’s Wally Books).

· Images that have a certain number of for example ladybirds.

· Images of skies, which have a more peaceful, feel to them.

The Entrance

The entrance to A and E was also discussed and whilst it was recognised that patients were often rushed into the department in a high state of anxiety, it was also deemed as important to create a calming and uplifting environment. It was also pointed out that this area was not a place where you would want patients hanging around looking at the images for too long, as they may block access. Images of places that children recognise would create a more familiar environment.

Ideas for Images:

· Images of countryside and sweeping landscapes around Edinburgh

· Butterflies, birds and flowers (to create an uplifting feel)

· Images of local parks etc (to create a familiarity)

Waiting Areas

These are places where parents are anxious, children and their siblings bored. Another issue here, as Sam (the play specialist pointed out) was that kids would often draw on anything other than paper, so any artwork needs to be very easily cleanable!

Ideas for Images:

· Images that contain places that kids and parents recognise

· Images that contain scenarios, local stories etc to discuss

· Maybe to incorporate text that suggests ways of looking at the images (making it easier for anxious parents)

Next Stage

My plans are to return to Edinburgh at the end of January, to spend some more time with staff and patients. Having taken some pictures on this visit, I will bring with me some images I have made based on the responses above. There have been many suggestions of other parts of Edinburgh that could be incorporated into the images, so I would like to also spend some time taking more pictures. These can be used to make more images with patients and gain feedback from staff.

On my next visit I would also like to meet with the architects and design team of the new build to discuss the plans and see where, what and how artworks can be incorporated into the new build. Also on this visit, it would be valuable to see what may be possible for the existing department – therefore a meeting with infection control and or technical staff would be beneficial.

All the above are based on my initial visit to Sick Kids, I am sure there is much more to uncover and welcome any feedback from Staff in regards to other areas, images etc for the artworks.

Images made by patients below

Some of BB Floorings other Rug Designs

2010-11-08T08:04:00.000-08:00

See our website for more details and to buy online www.bluebutterflyflooring.com

Sealife

Furry Beasts

Mini beasts

Tropical

Healthy Eating Veg

Healthy Eating Fruit

Blue Butterfly Vinyl to be Featured on ITV's 60 Minute Makeover

2010-11-08T07:56:00.000-08:00

During the summer Artistic Director Emily Campbell had an absolutely fabulous day with the 60 Minute Makeover Team. Top Designer Derek Taylor used Blue Butterfly Vinyl in a small conservatory for in a house in Hinkley. Derek claimed it was one of the best products he had had on the show, he designed the whole room around the floor using perspex furniture, so the floor could be seen through the small tables. As the floor was to be a surprise, we thought we had better remove any images of spiders, or mice - just in case there were any phobia's in the house!

Fantastic New Rug Samples

2010-11-08T07:26:00.000-08:00

We finally received our new rug samples and are feeling very pleased with them. Seen here is
Mini Beasts for Real and Underwater World. Both Rugs measure 1.9m x 3m, so should easily fit a small class of little ones. In these hard times of impending cuts we made a decision to keep the costs as low as we could, so despite being much bigger than our other rugs, we can retail these at £299. These rugs will be available to buy from Jan 2011 - check out our website for full details and
designs.

Underwater World has been designed for role play fun. Kids can dive with the diver, swim with sharks or pretend to be pirates or mermaids, discovering the treasure chest which is overflowing with jewels and shells. Blue Butterfly enjoy making products that are not only beautiful and fun, but also educational - 10 gold coins are hiding in the deep blue waters!

Mini Beasts for Real contains photographic images of mini beasts and flora all native too the UK. Ideal for learning about mini beasts, before going out on a pond dipping trip. On a rainy day, use it with our large mini beasts foam dice. kids can play games rolling the dice and seeing if they can find the bugs. Our foam dice also make ideal little seats for kids rooms.

Ten images - ten gold coins can you find them all?

2010-11-03T10:40:00.000-07:00

Have been really busy working on images for Manchester Children's Hospital as the work needs to be installed for 16th December! This means they need to go for approval next week and at the printers by the 19th November. So images below are for the 'Parents Pacing Corridor' as I have re-named it. The images not only relate to the two long images for link corridors, but also conceal hidden treasure to give kids
and parents an added dimension to the work. Check out Blue Butterfly Flooring Gallery pages for other Public Art Commissions

Magical Manchester Moments

2010-10-27T10:46:00.000-07:00

Magical Moments in Manchester continues...2 prints 400 cm x 120 cm for parallel walls in different spaces, the idea being that parents and staff can can talk to kids about what may be happening next. Image 1 being the first thing you see as you come into the ward. For example, "Who do you think owl is bringing the bike in for?" or "Where is zebra's skateboard?" Many things incorporated from things kids, staff and commissioners said, I particularly liked "Rainy Manchester" hence the elephants umbrella!

Manchester Starts to Turn....

2010-10-25T11:46:00.000-07:00

Started working on the images for Manchester Children's Hospital. I am taking this in to Ward 78 tomorrow, to show one special patient how what he wanted to see could work, aged 5 he talked about elephants spraying water everywhere, hence the elephants having fun in Manchester's town centre. Have also started playing with colour, attempting to recreate a rainbow of colour, think most kids find rainbows kind of magical. The other element to the brief is to incorporate some sports activities, I don't find this easy, but the giraffes are playing football with the moon, and am thinking the penguins may look good on a skateboard?

Good Day in Manchester

2010-10-19T01:13:00.000-07:00

After a horrible bout of the flu, Artistic Director Emily was finally well enough to make a start in Manchester. The morning was spent on a tour of the site and then talking with some very lively young patients. Asked what they would like to see if they could see anything out of the window, replies ranged from a steam train and elephants to the seaside and eagles (although mum pointed out that this little girl sometimes got eagles confused with sea gulls!) In the afternoon, Emily went to the Bruntwoods Tower in the centre of Manchester, views from the 24th floor were fantastic and Emily will be working to integrate these into the final artworks.

Three New Commissions

2010-10-10T00:18:00.000-07:00

We are really excited to announce that Artistic Director Emily Campbell has been commissioned to make artwork for three new sites. Manchester and Edinburgh Children's Hospitals and Blackburn LiFT, new NHS build.

The Manchester Commission needs to get started as soon as possible, so Emily will be up next week spending time on Ward 78 talking with patients and staff about what they like about Manchester and which bits are important to them. These 'bits' will then be photographed to create images for the artworks. Staff have already said, parents spend a lot of time pacing the currently blank corridors, waiting for their children to go down to surgery. This must be a really stressful and anxious time and so the environment is really important. The Manchester commission is being funded by the Bruntwoods Charity who have high rise offices right in the centre of Manchester, ideal for a panoramic shots. Emily is thinking of using Lenticlur Prints in the corridor, the image changes as you walk past them, perfect for Emily's work, which aims to create a little bit of Magic in the everyday. See below for previous public art commissions or check out the gallery pages www.bluebutterflyflooring.com

A Bit of Background

2010-10-06T00:16:00.000-07:00

Blue Butterfly Flooring Ltd creates fantastic illusions using the latest digital technology. All our products create educational and inspirational spaces for children and adults alike. Inspired by nature our unique and versatile flooring and table mats will be a talking point in any space.

Artistic Director Emily Campbell is an established artist. Her floor pieces have been exhibited both nationally and internationally and she has also completed many commissioned pieces for public spaces, such as hospitals and schools. She has a BA Honours degree in Fine Art and an MA from Chelsea School of Art.

Company Director Anne Campbell is the founder of Opportunity Links Ltd, a well-established company which pioneered the publication of family support information on the Internet. She also founded Cambridge Online, a charity which helps people with disabilities to take advantage of web-based applications.

Welcome to Blue Butterfly Flooring's Blog

2010-10-05T23:53:00.000-07:00

Welcome to our Blog, here you will find the latest developments and news from Blue Butterfly Flooring